Everything you wanted to know about Relational Psychoanalysis but were too confused to ask

By Philip Ringstrom, Ph.D.

The Relational School is a “community of those who have nothing in common”.

“Relational Psychoanalysis should be thought of as the ‘middle school’ of American Psychoanalysis.”

Charles Spezzano

Preface: The following involves a series of questions and answers that I have accumulated over the years when asked by students and colleagues what relational psychoanalysis is about.

What is Relational Psychoanalysis?

Relational psychoanalysis is more of a perspective than a theory per se. Some authors have preferred to think of it as series of questions, perhaps the overriding one being Steve Mitchell persistently asking, What do we have to presume to be true for any particular formulation to be true?